Chapter 69: Self-Sacrifice
Pain.
Pain that penetrated to the marrow.
Qi Xia clenched his teeth, crouching on the ground with a pained groan.
He felt as if he truly had some serious psychological problem.
Every time someone died around him, his head felt like it was splitting apart.
What exactly was causing this? Was it simply that seeing dead people triggered this reaction?
No, Qi Xia had already seen death several times in the games.
Not every death gave him a headache.
It took a full half minute before Qi Xia finally let out a long breath and stood up again, his expression blank.
The three people outside finally noticed what was happening inside.
They rushed into the room to check, only to find Officer Li dead, the cigarette still dangling from his lips.
Zhang Chenze covered her mouth, wanting to sob but afraid to make a sound.
"Goddamn it..." She slowly walked to the corner, grabbed her hair, and crouched down. Her formerly flawless Mandarin had now slipped into dialect. "What the hell is all this... what is everyone doing..."
Her emotions seemed extremely unstable, as if she had suffered a severe shock.
Before Qi Xia could speak, the bell tolled again from a distance.
*Clang!!*
Lin Qin and Old Lü were startled, turning their heads toward the source of the sound.
Although neither of them knew what the bell signified, they had heard it many times now whenever someone died.
Lin Qin steadied herself, walked over to Attorney Zhang, and gently patted her shoulder before speaking. "Attorney Zhang, you need to pull yourself together."
"How am I supposed to pull myself together..." Attorney Zhang lifted her head, her face haggard, her eyes filled with despair. "Officer Li died because of me... he died to save me..."
"What exactly happened?" Lin Qin took hold of Attorney Zhang's icy hand. "Don't keep it bottled up at a time like this. Tell me about it."
She seemed to know how to talk to someone who was emotionally losing control. In just a few sentences, she managed to lower Attorney Zhang's defenses.
"It was all that rabbit..." Attorney Zhang shook her head. "That crazy rabbit... she wanted both of us dead... If it hadn't been for Officer Li, we would both be dead... They're all insane... There's no law in their eyes whatsoever..."
Attorney Zhang slowly recounted what had happened after Qi Xia and the others left.
The two of them had experienced something different from what Qi Xia had inferred. It wasn't Officer Li who had discovered the game model of this godforsaken place—it was Attorney Zhang.
After Qi Xia's group of four had left, Attorney Zhang decisively started talking to the bull-man across from the convenience store.
Just as she herself had said, she needed to gather enough intelligence before she could make a proper judgment.
After learning that the games here wouldn't necessarily get you killed, and might instead earn you some "Tao," she explained the situation to Officer Li, Xiao Ran, and Doctor Zhao. But among the three, only Officer Li supported her view and decided to gamble with their last remaining "Tao."
This approach met with fierce opposition from Xiao Ran. She clearly knew that "Tao" was used as "chips" to play games, yet she insisted on keeping the "Tao" for herself, preferring to waste that slim chance rather than allowing it to be used for gambling.
Officer Li, mindful that Xiao Ran was a weak woman, kept trying to reason with her gently. But Attorney Zhang wasn't about to indulge her.
After several rounds of logically sharp and verbally cutting exchanges, she reduced Xiao Ran to silence.
After all, when it came to "arguing," how could a kindergarten teacher ever outmatch a lawyer?
The game set up across from the convenience store was run by the "Bull-man." It was a game so simple it couldn't be simpler—an obstacle race.
Inside the restaurant were many old tires and tall wooden walls. As long as you could complete the course within the time limit, you would win two "Tao."
This game was practically tailor-made for Officer Li. He was originally trained at the police academy, and obstacle racing had been something he practiced frequently as a student. Although many years had passed and he was a bit rusty, completing the course within the time limit was still well within his ability.
Entry fee: one "Tao." Victory: two "Tao" earned.
Officer Li seemed to have found some kind of loophole. He participated three times in a row, and their "Tao" grew to four.
Only when he had completely exhausted himself did the two finally leave the game venue.
This experience greatly boosted their confidence. They believed they had a real chance of collecting enough "Tao" before meeting up with Qi Xia.
Later, they stumbled upon the game site of the "Rabbit-man."
It was an "escape" type game, and they thought it wouldn't be too difficult either.
In a small room, the two were trapped in opposite corners.
Zhang Chenze was tied up inside a huge transparent fish tank that was gradually filling with water.
Officer Li, meanwhile, was handcuffed to the wall on the other side of the room.
Beside his hand was only a wooden stick.
The key to Officer Li's handcuffs was placed inside Zhang Chenze's fish tank.
And the switch to stop the water filling her tank was right near Officer Li.
Both of them had a way to save the other.
But Zhang Chenze was bound with wire—she couldn't untie the ropes, nor could she throw the handcuff key out of the tank.
Although Officer Li was very close to the water valve switch, his right hand was locked, and he was always two steps away from the valve.
Neither of them could save the other in time.
How cruel was this game?
It wasn't an "escape" game at all. It was a game that thoroughly tested human nature.
On the surface, both were trapped and needed to escape on their own. But if you thought about it carefully, Officer Li's situation was fundamentally different from Zhang Chenze's.
As time passed, Zhang Chenze would surely drown. But Officer Li wouldn't.
Even if he stayed there for a whole day, he would be safe.
Zhang Chenze said without any pretense, "At that moment, I thought I was dead for sure."
Then Officer Li tried many ways to break free from the handcuffs.
Ordinary handcuffs weren't difficult for him to open, but he had no lock-picking tools at hand. The only thing that could possibly help was that wooden stick.
"Officer Li was so stupid..." Zhang Chenze sobbed, lowering her head. "Why didn't he just throw the stick over and smash the fish tank...? Instead, he broke his own..."
After hearing this, Qi Xia let out a helpless sigh. "He wrestled with it."
"What?" Zhang Chenze raised her vacant eyes. "You're saying this was the result of his deliberation?"
"Mm." Qi Xia nodded. "He must have known that smashing the glass with the stick wasn't a wise choice."
"But he didn't even try..." Zhang Chenze started crying again. "He could have at least tried..."
"And what if he did try?" Qi Xia said. "If that wooden stick hadn't broken the glass but instead fallen beside the fish tank... what would you two have done then?"
Zhang Chenze choked. Qi Xia's question hit the nail on the head.
If that wooden stick hadn't shattered the tank but had fallen out of reach instead, the two of them would have completely lost any hope of escaping.
As Zhang Chenze watched in shock, Officer Li used that wooden stick to crush his own hand.